In November of last year, the 546 foot tall Mina Plaza in Abu Dhabi officially broke the world record for tallest demolition by explosion, supplanting Hudson Department Store in Detroit, Michigan, which held the record for 22 years.
Read moreTop 7 Demolition Videos of 2020
2020 was a stressful year, so let’s decompress a little bit by reviewing some of the most fun demolition videos from the past year. A demolition that broke a 22 year old record highlights the bunch and I also stretch what the definition of “demolition” is a little bit, because I think the video is so cool. Don’t @ me.
Without further ado, here are the top 7 demolition videos from 2020:
Read more[VIDEO] Vertical Water Cannons Precede Implosion of 15 Story Tower in France
Demolition by implosions videos are obviously fun to watch, but the actual process creates an insane amount of dust. The challenge becomes hoe do you douse an enormous structure that falls within seconds with enough water to control dust effectively? The answer might be more explosives…
Read moreCollapsed N.O. Hotel Update: Demo Robots Being Used to Clear Path to Two Bodies Still Trapped Inside
photo by Infrogmation of New Orleans, CC BY 2.0
After finally beginning the demolition of the partially collapsed Hard Rock Hotel in New Orleans, Louisiana in May of this year, the remains of 2 of the 3 workers killed in the incident are still trapped within the building. After working for several weeks to clear a safe path to retrieve the bodies, a lawyer from the development team of the project provided an update recently.
Read more[VIDEO] Watch the Explosive Demolition of Historic Detroit Basketball Arena, the Palace of Auburn Hills
via YouTube
From 1988 to 2017, the Palace of Auburn Hills was home to the Detroit Pistons of the NBA. On July 11, 2020, it was imploded into smithereens, ending a fantastic run for the historic arena.
Read moreDemolition Has Finally Begun on Collapsed New Orleans Hard Rock Hotel
photo by Infrogmation of New Orleans, CC BY 2.0
In October of 2019, a Hard Rock Hotel that was under construction partially collapsed suddenly, killing 3 workers on site and injuring 30 others. After months of investigations, back and forth with the city, OSHA fines, and more, the demolition of what remains of the building has finally started.
As you may remember, the bodies of 2 of the 3 men killed in the collapse were unable to be recovered because the building was deemed too dangerous. Sadly, those bodies are still trapped inside the building. The demolition will finally allow them to be recovered.
According to 4WWL, the demolition will take place across several phases and should be completed by October of this year, roughly 1 full year after the collapse. Demolition officially started in mid-May.
In the first phase, crews will have to remove the rest of one of the cranes that were imploded soon after the collapse. Two tower cranes were damaged in the process and, when imploded, one fell on top of the hotel and the other impaled the street below.
After the cranes are removed, the bodies of the two men will finally be recovered.
When the bodies are safely recovered, demolition of the top 10 floors, mainly composed of steel will be demolished. The bottom 8 floors, mainly composed of concrete, will be demolished, completing the process.
4WWL has more on the demolition in the video below:
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[WATCH] 8 Power Plant Chimneys Demolished at Same Time is Better than Dominoes
via Demolition News
Power plants are facing demolition all over the world as country’s move away from less environmentally friendly power sources and abandon older facilities. The good news, for us, is that we get some pretty awesome demolition videos out of the shutdowns.
Read more[VIDEO] The Leaning Tower of Dallas is Dead. Long Live the Leaning Tower of Dallas.
A couple of weeks ago, we followed the very amusing story of the Leaning Tower of Dallas. For those unfamiliar, it all started as an innocent attempt at a building implosion, but ended up becoming an internet meme, a tourism landmark, and the subject of a petition to turn it into a monument. Well, the big joke is over, as what remained of the tower has finally fallen.
Read more[VIDEO] Implosion Fails to Bring Down Dallas High Rise, Dubbed ‘Leaning Tower of Dallas’
Crowds typically swarm to the site of a building implosion; it can be more exciting than a firework show. Sometimes, though, spectators get the thrill of seeing the process not go quite as planned. Dallas residents got tat thrill over the weekend, when an implosion of a high-rise building in Uptown Dallas refused to come all the way down.
Read more[VIDEO] 2 U. of Texas Towers Imploded within 8 Feet of Another Building
We recently posted our list of the Top 7 Demolition Videos of 2019 and it seems as though we now have the first entry for the 2020 list. This video comes from a familiar face: Controlled Demolitions, Inc. (CDI).
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